The present invention relates to certain 4,7-disubstituted derivatives of 3,4-dihydro-2H-pyrrolo[1,2-a]pyrazin-1-one compounds, which modulate the activity of protein kinases. The compounds of this invention are therefore useful in treating diseases caused by dysregulated protein kinase activity. The present invention also relates to methods for preparing these compounds, combinatorial libraries thereof, pharmaceutical compositions comprising these compounds, and methods of treating diseases utilizing pharmaceutical compositions comprising these compounds. The malfunctioning of protein kinases (PKs) is the hallmark of numerous diseases. A large share of the oncogenes and proto-oncogenes involved in human cancers code for PKs. The enhanced activities of PKs are also implicated in many non-malignant diseases, such as benign prostate hyperplasia, familial adenomatosis, polyposis, neuro-fibromatosis, psoriasis, vascular smooth cell proliferation associated with atherosclerosis, pulmonary fibrosis, arthritis glomerulonephritis and post-surgical stenosis and restenosis.
PKs are also implicated in inflammatory conditions and in the multiplication of viruses and parasites. PKs may also play a major role in the pathogenesis and development of neurodegenerative disorders.
For general reference to PKs malfunctioning or disregulation see, for instance, Current Opinion in Chemical Biology 1999, 3, 459-465 and Carcinogenesis 2008, 29, 1087-191.
8-Hydroxy-3,4-dihydro-2H-pyrrolo[1,2-a]pyrazin-1-one derivatives for prevention and treatment of infection by HIV and in the prevention, delay in the onset and treatment of AIDS are disclosed in WO 2004/047725 in the name of Merck & Co., Inc., USA. The present inventors have now discovered that the new compounds of formula (I), described below, are kinase inhibitors and are thus useful in therapy as antitumor agents.